Apologies for missing a week! Life is hectic, but I'm back today with another, really fun update that I hope you all enjoy as much as I enjoyed writing it.
The Slytherin Quidditch team is made up of players that I know played for the team as mentioned in the Half Blood Prince, as well as other, random Slytherin students mentioned on the Harry Potter wiki to fill out the missing spots.
Some dialogue in this chapter is borrowed from Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince: Chapter 14 – Felix Felicis.
He dreamt that night of a bright summer's day on the shores of Loch Ryan. He had made a picnic basket full of snacks and treats, and he was lying down on the blanket while Hermione was wading in the shallows along with his parents. It was pure bliss, and he couldn't help but smile when she turned around and gave him a wide smile, when suddenly the sky went dark, and plumes of black smoke began descending from the sky, until a flash of green light woke him up with a jolt.
Panting, Leo noticed that the sunlight was streaming in through the windows and into the gaps between the curtains on his bed. He took a minute to settle himself down from the dream before pulling the duvet away and swivelling around so that his bare feet were on the wooden floor. Pulling the curtains open, he noticed that the others in the dorm had already left and one glance at his watch showed that he only had an hour left to get some breakfast. Quickly getting changed into some casual clothes while adding a crimson jumper over the top, he finished off by pulling on some boots and went running down towards the empty common room, only to bump into none other than the witch he had been dreaming about the night before.
"Leo!" Hermione exclaimed, a brief smile on her face as she saw he was about to run into her. Thankfully he stopped just in time, but at that exact moment he also noticed her face morph into a frown. "You're late, you've almost missed breakfast."
"I know, I overslept." He admitted bashfully, running a hand through his hair. "But I'll meet you down at the pitch after I grab something?"
Hermione huffed, folding her arms angrily as she tapped one of her feet on the floor angrily. "I don't think I'm going." She said through gritted teeth.
"What?" Leo asked, completely confused. "Why not?"
She flung herself into a sofa and groaned louder than Leo's stomach rumbled. "Harry is cheating! He won a vial of Felix Felicis in Potions earlier in the year." At Leo's blank look of not understanding she scoffed, shaking her head before rushing into an explanation. "It's liquid luck, and has been banned in both examinations and sporting events since the 17th Century! His grand idea to stop Ron panicking was to douse him in an illegal substance!"
Leo's first thought was to think that it was a brilliant idea, before the more rational part of his brain took over. "Are you sure it was liquid luck?" He saw her glare at him and tried to explain quickly. "I'm not doubting you! I'm just checking. Maybe it was a calming drought, or maybe a laxative potion to keep him otherwise occupied instead of jumping down all of our throats at the slightest thing."
He could see Hermione's lips flinch towards a smirk before they returned to the frown. "I recognised the bottle from Professor Slughorn's class when he put it away. I just can't believe him!" She let out a frustrated grunt again. "He knows it's illegal. If he's caught…"
"He won't be. He's Harry Potter." Leo said wanting to roll his eyes at the mere thought of Harry ever getting in major trouble, but he resisted his urges, instead moving closer to sit on the arm of the sofa she had jumped onto. "I'm sure his intentions were good, and…"
"Please tell me that you, the Magical Law student who has been speaking for months about a career within the government, are not about to defend Harry as he is about to potentially break a 300-year-old law intended to ensure fair sportsmanship here." Hermione frowned up at him, folding her arms crossly.
Leo shrugged, knowing that she made an excellent point. "I wouldn't normally…" He insisted. "But…"
"But what?" She narrowed her eyes.
With a grin, he simply said. "We're playing Slytherin." This time it was his turn to receive the slap over the head, but there was no malice behind it and Leo heard soft chuckles follow.
"I suppose it is always nice to see Harry get one over on Malfoy." She sighed, though her brow furrowed once more as she gave Leo a determined glare. "But I'm not happy about the cheating."
Leo nodded. "We'll tell him off together afterwards." He joked, before offering her his hand to help her up. "Come on, I need some food before I head down or I'll be the one falling out of the sky."
He grinned later on when he realised that they didn't let go of one another until they reached the staircase.
After scoffing down two slices of toast and a pumpkin juice, Leo was among the last to arrive at the Gryffindor section of the Quidditch Pitch, rising up the stairs just as the new announcer for the year had started his commentary, and it only took the first sentence for Leo to groan at the boring tone and wish Lee Jordan hadn't left Hogwarts the previous summer.
"Hello and welcome to the start of the 1996/97 Hogwarts Quidditch tournament with the usual matchup between Gryffindor and Slytherin. Today we have two new captains leading the teams out, as Potter and Urqahart have picked their teams to get their Houses off to the best possible start."
"Not that clown." Leo heard Seamus groan from the front of the stand as he took his spot next to Fay, with Hermione joining him on his other side.
Leo turned to his best friend. "Have I missed anything?" He asked her.
Fay turned to him and grinned after wiping the hair out of her face from the wind. "Malfoy's not playing, nor is Vaisey, he took a bludger to the head yesterday." She explained.
Her words made his eyes widen in sheer alarm and he looked over at Hermione knowingly. "That's a stroke of luck." He muttered dryly, realising that perhaps Harry really had done it and his thoughts ran at 100 miles an hour from there, thinking about how if he was caught then Gryffindor would likely forfeit the entire season, and then they'd all be in trouble with no Quidditch to distract them. Hermione seemed to agree and her frown returned as she folded her arms.
"And here come the teams." The announcer stated as 14 players came walking out of their changing room tunnels before mounting their brooms and pushing up into the air. Leo recognised the voice at this point, hearing 5th year Hufflepuff and heavily disliked former member of the DA Zacharias Smith. "For Gryffindor we have Weasley, Weasley, Robins, Thomas, Coote, Peakes and Potter. For Slytherin meanwhile, we have Bletchley, Urqahart, Pummel, Baddock, Crabbe, Goyle and Harper!"
"He's so dull, what was McGonagall thinking choosing him?" Fay groaned. Leo agreed, being used to the enigmatic Lee Jordan for the last 5 years had given them a certain expectation in how Quidditch commentary at Hogwarts should be.
"Instead of having one commentator we have 3 this year." Hermione explained to them all. "Apparently some students complained about bias when Lee was here so there are just enough to ensure there's always an unbiased party."
It made a lot of sense, but everybody around them agreed that they would miss Lee as all of the players but Harry and Urqahart got into their positions. Leo leant forward excitedly as Madam Hooch spoke to the two captains, noticing that Harry offered his left hand for a handshake before the whistle blew, the players kicked into the air and the balls were released.
"GO GO GRYFFINDOR!" The chant from around them roared, Leo included as he clapped his hands watching as the Quaffle immediately was captured by Slytherin 3rd Year Malcolm Baddock.
"Well there they go." Smith announced. "And I think we're all surprised to see the team that Potter's put together this year. Many thought given Ronald Weasley's patchy performance as Keeper last year that he might be off the team. But of course… a close personal friendship with the Captain does help…"
"He got in on merit!" A feminine voice shouted from behind Leo, and he could only nod his head fiercely as the Slytherin chasers broke down the pitch for their first shot.
"Oh and here comes Slytherin's first attempt on goal… it's Urqahart streaking down the pitch and…" The Slytherin captain punched it towards the right hoop, only for Ron to swoop down and kick the Quaffle away. "Weasley saves it. Well, he's bound to get lucky sometimes, I suppose." Smith added, only for the Gryffindor's to boo the dull commentator before chanting Ron's name out. Hermione and Leo just looked at one another again, and as the game went on it was looking more and more likely that Hermione had been right and Ron had ingested liquid luck. Everything was going his way as he punched, kicked and one time even headed the Quaffle away, letting absolutely nothing in the hoops behind him while Ginny alone scored 4 goals to help Gryffindor to a 60-0 lead on the half hour point, something that stopped Smith from picking on the pair of red heads and moved him on to the two beaters instead.
"Did we really offend him that much last year in the DA?" Fay grumbled, clapping as Dean intercepted a good break from the Slytherin's before the Gryffindor crowd began cheering when he went all the way up the other end and scored again. In fact the goals kept coming and Leo's voice was starting to feel a little hoarse after another rendition of their own version of Weasley Is Our King.
Of course, a Quidditch match wouldn't end until one of the Seekers caught the snitch, and so when Gryffindor went 100-0 up Leo started to watch Harry more, meaning he had a clear view of the moment that the Slytherin Seeker Harper decided to collide with the Gryffindor Captain. "That's a foul!" He roared alongside numerous others that had joined in the protests, but soon his outcry was replaced with excitement as both seekers soared upwards, with Harry snatching the small golden ball from just underneath Harper's own hand, sending Leo and his fellow Gryffindor's into jubilation.
The Gryffindor team all soared towards Harry as the team celebrated all together, although one crimson blur went beyond the team and crashed into the commentators podium, causing almost the entire stadium to burst into laughter.
"I knew that Butterbeer would come in handy!" Seamus exclaimed over the noise as he started running towards the castle. "Party in the common room!"
Leo joined in the cheers that followed, only stopping when he felt a tug on his sleeve as Hermione looked up at him. "I'll meet you there, I want a word with Harry." He went to say that he'd join her, but Hermione pre-empted that by adding. "It's fine, I'll meet you there."
He watched her walk off before his sleeve got tugged again, and he saw Fay beaming up at him with a telling grin. Rolling his eyes he joined the descending Gryffindor's on their walk back to the castle. Most of them were singing Weasley Is Our King, but Fay instead decided she wanted to tease him, snaking her arm into his own. "I'm surprised you aren't trundling off after Granger."
Scoffing, Leo shook his head as he shoved her away. "We're not attached at the hip, Dunbar."
"It seems it." Anna said from Fay's other side. "You're always together now. In classes, in the library, snuggling up in the Common Room…"
"We're friends." Leo protested for what seemed like the thousandth time. "What is it with two people hanging out that makes everybody else so… judgy."
Anna and Fay looked at one another before they burst out laughing. "I think the gentleman protests too much." Anna smirked.
"I agree." Fay grinned widely.
"Have I mentioned how much I hate the pair of you." Leo grumbled.
"Almost constantly." Anna sang.
Fay linked arms with Leo and began to skip back to the castle. "We just miss you Leo, that's all."
"I'm not going anywhere." He shrugged, suddenly feeling the jubilation of the match disappear as his thoughts turned to the wider world and the threats that were moving out in the open. "It's just… times are changing. We're at war and whether I like it or not I'm right in the middle of it given who my parents are and what they are doing. As are Harry, Ron and Hermione. Me being friends with them is just an extension of that, it can't be like it was a few years back. Times have changed."
They stayed silent for a moment contemplating that fact as they entered the castle until they started rising up a staircase to take them towards the Gryffindor Tower when Anna asked. "Do you like it?"
"Sorry?" Leo turned questioningly.
"Do you like the fact you've been dragged into it." Anna asked. "I mean, before it was just us three getting on with things basically on the sidelines while everything revolved around Potter and his gang. Now, you're pretty much in that gang, the tides have shifted. You aren't… ignored for want of a better word."
Leo quickly got her meaning. "This isn't about having more friends, Anna." He tried to explain, his mind racing to try and find the words that would make two people as separated from the dangers as any both Fay and Anna were understand. "I just… part of my life has always been missing and knowing about my Father has just opened up more doors, but those doors being opened also means that the war is closer to me than it is to you because my parents are actively fighting. But if not knowing my who my Dad is meant the war never happened and You-Know-Who wasn't terrorising the country then I'd give it all back in a heartbeat."
"Even if it meant Granger going back to not knowing you exist?" Fay asked with an eyebrow raised. She chuckled at the look Leo gave her. "I'm only messing. It's nice, I've never actually seen you so… happy."
"It's reciprocated." Anna shrugged. "She talks more to us now too because of you."
"Does she? What about?" Leo asked, a little bit too quickly and the girls laughed again. "Oh shut up." He shook his head, storming ahead of them before the pair noticed the soppy grin that had appeared on his face.
When they arrived back in the Gryffindor Common Room the party was just kicking off, and no sooner had Leo returned from dumping his hat and scarf on his bed, passing an irate McLaggen on his way back down, when a bottle of Butterbeer was thrust into his hand by Seamus. Re-joining the girls they started talking more about the game when the portrait opened once more, and this time the applause ramped up as the members of the team started to filter in. First came the younger ones as Demelza, Ritchie and Jimmy entered, before the room erupted as Ron arrived with Dean.
"WEASLEY! WEASLEY! WEASLEY! WEASLEY! WEASLEY! WEASLEY!" The chants were roaring, and Ron lapped up the applause, shaking people's hands and grinning from ear to ear at the praise. A bottle was also thrust at him, and the red-head quickly downed the entire drink before cheering, as more applause and celebration sounded. Leo chuckled at the scene before turning around to congratulate Dean when all of a sudden further whistles and cat calls flooded the room and Leo turned back to see that Ron had suddenly found himself lip locked with Lavender Brown.
"Bloody hell." Anna grimaced from nearby.
Leo could only agree, the reminder of the accusations from earlier in the week springing to his mind. "Hypocritical little…" He trailed off, not finishing the curse and instead taking an angry sip to finish off his drink. Thankfully the snogging pair moved out of the centre of the room still attached at the tongues, leaving a clearer view to the portrait hole where a few minutes later Hermione came inside the Common Room, and Leo noticed her eyes didn't show the smile her lips were. She noticed him quickly and walked over to him.
"He didn't put it in." She whispered hurriedly, her voice showing her frustration. "He made me think he had… made Ron think he had, but the bottle was unopened. And now of course Ron is even more cross with me." She rolled her eyes and huffed, but that only served to point her in the direction of where Ron was currently wrapped around Lavender. "Oh for the love of…" She scowled. "After everything he's thrown at me this week?"
"I guess that's one way to get experience." Another voice sounded, and Leo hadn't noticed that Ginny and Harry had returned to the Common Room too, with Ginny looking over in disgust. "He looks like he's eating her face, doesn't he?" Ginny added, before shrugging. "I suppose he's got to refine his technique somehow."
"At least he won't be badgering you any more Hermione." Harry noted, and finally a laugh fell from the brunette's lips.
"That's true." She smiled, and Leo felt comfortable enough to go and grab another pair of Butterbeers, opening the caps and handing one to Hermione. "Thank you." She said softly.
They managed a conversation about the match for 5 minutes before Ginny shook her head. "No, I can't, if I stay here I might just throw up at the sight. Can we go?" She asked Harry, her eyes moving between him and the snogging red-head in the corner.
Harry looked over at Hermione, asking a silent question of if she would be alright. Hermione nodded. "Go, we'll be fine." Harry smiled at that, letting himself be led away by Ginny's hand.
"It gives you a bit of hope, doesn't it." Leo noted. "Seeing them two together and smiling."
Hermione nodded. "It's been a tough year, a tough few years, for Harry more than most. To see him acting like a normal 16-year-old… it's nice."
But the unspoken truth was there, and Leo knew both of them could sense it. He looked out of the window and saw the open plains of Scotland spreading out into the horizon, knowing that somewhere out there You-Know-Who was plotting something that would make all the smiles fade.
Review:
Lightningscar: Book 6, as well as film 6 which leaned even more into it, is a lot of teen drama really… and it's been a very fun change of pace to what I normally do! Harry and Ginny in the books are great, it's probably my favourite canon pairing despite myself also enjoying Harry/Hermione in fanfiction. The song is a standard, teasing song that gets sung in schools, or at least it did when I was a kid but I just realised it cut half of it off so I've gone back to edit that. It's meant to spell Kissing in letters.